Lose your hat? Blame Chinook winds

A blast of Chinook winds should make for a blustery - if mild - day across the Pikes Peak region.

Westerly winds are expected to gust from 40 mph to 50 mph through mid-afternoon Friday, causing temperatures to rise to the low 50s, said Paul Wolyn, a meteorologist with the National Weather Service in Pueblo.

The Colorado Springs Airport reported a gust of 42 mph at about 9 a.m., he said, while a gust at around 10 a.m. neared 50 mph at the Air Force Academy.

"It's just the typical springtime windy day," Wolyn said.

Chinook winds typically form when winds funnel through the mountains as they travel east, warming along the way. They can vary across the Pikes Peak region - for example, while wind whipped downtown Colorado Springs on Friday morning, a 12 mph breeze from the east could felt at Fort Carson, Wolyn said.

Colorado Springs is forecast to hit a high temperature Friday of 53 degrees, and temperatures are expected to linger in the mid- to high-40s during the weekend.